(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of casting liquid metal, particularly steel, more particularly to a method relating to the positioning of a ladle shroud in a casting plant.
(2) Description of the Related Art
A ladle shroud is a tube having a channel which extends essentially along an axis, this being vertical when the tube is in the use position, and allows liquid metal from a metallurgical vessel, such as a ladle, to flow into a tundish. It is inserted into the plant so as to have an upper end in contact with a component upstream of the plant, integral with the ladle, and a lower end immersed in a tundish.
In the prior art, ladle shrouds are delivered on a casting platform packaged in a box. They are more particularly presented in the box in a recumbent position, in which the axis of the channel of the shroud lies horizontally. The shrouds are held together and in the box by metal rings surrounding them.
It is known that, to insert a shroud into the plant, the shroud is gripped in its use position by means of a handling arm comprising a gripper surrounding the shroud, the arm being controlled manually by an operator. Document EP-A1-0 858 851 describes such a handling arm.
To prepare the shroud for this operation, an operator opens the box and cuts the metal rings surrounding the shrouds. These may then be spread out on the floor of the platform. Each shroud is then placed individually by the operators, by rotating them so that they reach the use position.
However, the ladle shrouds, because of their size and their purpose, are heavy and bulky components which generally weigh more than 50 kilograms. Handling these shrouds is therefore very arduous for the operators and may take a long time. This is liable to delay the fitting of the shroud into the casting plant, therefore causing many undesirable effects.